From story to spine: how journalists turn reporting into books
Fri 17 April 2026
11:30
Free
Calculating distance...
Last year’s book-writing session at IJF was standing-room only, confirming what many of us suspected; across borders and beats, journalists are hungry to turn their reporting into books—and to understand a rapidly changing publishing landscape.
This panel will bring together decision-makers and practitioners from across that ecosystem to talk candidly about what it takes for journalists to move between articles, longform, and books, how non-traditional and traditional publishing models are evolving, and what actually makes a “bestseller” in 2026 and beyond.
We will explore:
> Non-traditional paths vs. traditional/commercial deals: when to pursue a Big Five publisher, an independent or university press, or alternative routes (audio-first, subscription, digital-first)
> How editors and publishers evaluate proposals from journalists: voice, platform, subject, timing, and risk
> Skills journalists need to move back and forth between newsroom work and book projects (reporting depth, structure, voice, negotiation, collaboration)
> International and global angles: rights, translation, and how stories travel across markets
> The role of data and platforms (from TikTok to Tertulia) in building readership and momentum
> What “bestseller” means now: lists, algorithms, niche vs. mass audiences, and sustainability for authors
The tone will be practical and transparent, with panelists sharing successes, missteps, and what they wish journalists knew before they start their next proposal.
Moderated by S. Mitra Kalita.
Organised in association with URL Media.
Modified more than a month ago
Event collection
Pages involved
Dawn Davis
Dawn Davis is Senior Vice President and Publisher of 37 Ink. The Poets & Writers 2019 Editor of the Year, Dawn Davis is the founding publisher of 37 INK, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. She has edited several prize-winning and New York Times bestselling books, including Pulitzer Prize winners, Master Slave Husband Wife by Ilyon Woo and The Known World by Edward P. Jones, and the National Book Critics Circle award winning How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair. In 2020, Davis was named Editor in Chief of the Condé Nast magazines Bon Appétit and Epicurious. She returned to Simon & Schuster in 2023.
Lynda Hammes
Lynda Hammes is co-founder of Tertulia, a tech startup dedicated to creating a more vibrant online ecosystem for books. Tertulia includes a content-rich online bookstore loved by avid readers, and most recently, a fast-growing software platform built to help authors to promote their books. She previously served as Publisher of Foreign Affairs magazine, where she helped grow and globalize the readership of one of the world’s leading publications on international affairs, and as COO and Head of Marketing at Danish-American social science research and consulting firm ReD Associates. Earlier in her career, she worked as a journalist and editor for a range of publications. Lynda holds an MBA degree from Thunderbird School of Global Management and got her undergraduate degree at New York University, where she studied art history, journalism and Spanish literature.
Mitra Kalita
S. Mitra Kalita is an award-winning veteran journalist, media executive, prolific commentator, and author of two books. At the height of the pandemic, Mitra founded two media companies to ensure communities of color are served, supported and centered: The first, Epicenter-NYC, which started as a newsletter to help New Yorkers get through Covid, is now a community journalism multiplatform company, and URL Media, a growing network of Black and Brown owned media organizations that share content, distribution, and revenues to increase their long-term viability. She’s on the board of the Philadelphia Inquirer and writes a weekly column for TIME Magazine and Charter. Before launching her companies, Mitra served as SVP at CNN Digital, overseeing the national news, breaking news, programming, opinion, and features teams. Her media background also spans the LA Times, where she was managing editor, Wall Street Journal, Quartz and the Washington Post.
Raju Narisetti
Raju Narisetti’s current role as Partner, Global Publishing at McKinsey & Company is the latest in a 32-year global career in media and publishing, during which he has created, reimagined and managed major media organizations in North America, Europe and Asia, as well as being on the frontlines of digital transformation challenges and new ventures in publishing. Raju worked as a journalist at The Wall Street Journal where, over 14 years, he went from a Reporting Intern to be the Editor of WSJ Europe, and later Managing Editor, Digital, of the global WSJ, and part of a team that won the 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News for 9/11 coverage. At The Washington Post, Raju was the Managing Editor who helped start and shape the newspaper's print/digital transformation. At both WSJ and Washington Post, Raju was the youngest and first person of color on their mastheads. Raju is also the founder of Mint , India's business news brand. After his journalism stint, as a media business executive, he was Senior Vice President of Strategy for News Corp, and later CEO of the Gizmodo Media Group, which then encompassed a group of digital journalism sites that included Gizmodo, The Onion, Jezebel, DeadSpin, Lifehacker, and The Root. Prior to joining McKinsey in 2020, he was a journalism educator, leading the Knight Bagehot Fellowships in Economics and Business Journalism at Columbia University, where he also was a Professor of Professional Practice at the School of Journalism. An alum of the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leader cohort, Raju is also a Board Trustee of the Wikimedia Foundation, which oversees and supports the global Wikimedia platform, and where he heads the Talent & Culture Committee.
Madhulika Sikka
Madhulika Sikka is a Vice President and Executive Editor at Crown Publishing Group, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Prior to publishing she spent more than two decades as a media executive across all platforms - video, audio, digital - creating content, launching new initiatives and managing high performing talent. She is the recipient of multiple awards for her journalism including Emmys, duPonts, Peabodys, as well as from NABJ, SAJA, the RTNDA and RTCA. She is also the author of A Breast Cancer Alphabet, published by Crown. In 2017, she created and curated a book discovery project, 52 weeks 52 books 52 women, a website and podcast.